Oppo releases ColorOS with Android 12

Oppo released the latest version of its Android experience, ColorOS 12, making it one of the first original equipment manufacturers to run on Android 12.

The new system will be available in South Africa from the beginning of March and will apply to the Reno 5 and A74 models. Internationally, it will apply to 110 smartphone models and will reach 440 million Oppo users.

ColorOS introduces a new inclusive user interface that delivers a smoother performance and adds more personalised customisation options. It also offers significantly improved RAM performance, greater security, and a range of rich features that will help users to improve productivity, protect their privacy, and manage their work-life balance better.

Based on Oppo’s new Infinite Design aesthetic, ColorOS 12 comes packed with innovative features. These include an improved AI system booster, which ensures better responsiveness; camera and microphone indicators that provide instant icon prompts whenever an app accesses the camera or mic; a drag-and-drop facility; and single-click editing.

New privacy features include a Privacy Dashboard, which makes it much easier for users to check up on and manage their privacy status. Proprietary anti-peeping protection also prevents third-party access to the device’s camera and microphone, while unique privacy features, developed by Oppo, include Private System, Private Safe, App Lock and many others.

Security is further enhanced by improved data storage and process compliance procedures, which are ISO27001 and ePrivacy certified. For instance, user data is stored on local servers, saved in non-plain text format and transmitted using proprietary protocols.

All of this comes bundled with softer icons, a Quantum Animation Engine that delivers 300 improved animations to produce exceptionally lifelike effects, and an information framework that is friendly to 67 languages, many different cultures and a wide range of smartphone formats.

In line with Oppo’s long-term R&D focus on the convergence between technology and culture and on delivering a seamless user experience, ColorOS 12 also features anti-fragmentation and intelligent resource allocation, meaning that it uses less memory to run applications and boasts a 20% reduction in battery usage, according to its in-house testing.

While ColorOS has incorporated many stock Android features, it has also inspired the customisable trend in Android 12, an example of which is the wallpaper-based theming system in Material You. Another example is that the App Cloner from ColorOS now features in Android 12.

And, as Oppo’s ColorOS aims to become a more Android-developer-friendly OS, the company has not only opened up its latest camera capabilities, including ultra-steady video shooting, HDR and super-wide angle lenses, it has also opened up its HyperBoost Color Vision Enhancement feature to enhance the Android ecosystem.

Oppo will begin rolling out ColorOS 12 in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, and will progressively roll out the system to all other geographical jurisdictions in the coming months. Oppo devices manufactured since 2019 all qualify for a number of free Android updates, depending on the individual model.